German brand's flagship wagon sets a new benchmark.

There are two things about Porsche’s flagship passenger car, the grandiosely named Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid, that you would imagine could never be bettered.

First, that this technological tour de force, which combines an extremely powerful turbo V8 engine with an electric motor to produce interstellar performance from something as comfortable (and almost as large) as the Orient Express couldn’t possibly become bulkier, more exclusive and even more expensive.

Second, that the already catalogue-busting badge couldn’t become even longer.

You’ve probably guessed it: wrong on both counts.

When the (deep breath) Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Sport Turismo arrives in Australia next month this wagon version of the existing liftback launched in May will, at $466,400 be $6300 more expensive, weigh in at 2325kg, have 20 litres more luggage carrying capacity and carry a badge long enough to need splitting across the tail gate and both flanks of the vehicle.

But among other things it shares with the standard Panamera S E-Hybrid - apart from a price tag higher than a 911 Turbo S sports car - is that it is fast. In fact, very fast indeed.

2018 Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Sport Turismo. Photo: Supplied

You tend to get that when combining a 4.0-litre, twin turbo V8 producing 404kW of power with an electric motor good for another 100kW. The all-up output is 500kW but just as importantly in a hefty and luxurious five-seater there is also an ocean of torque which, thanks to the electric motor’s ability to deliver from very low revs, peaks at 850Nm from 1900rpm.

So yes the Panamera accelerates hard, from zero to 100km/h in a claimed 3.4 seconds or if you live in Germany, from 0-200km/h in 11.9.

Believe us, when you plant the right foot at any speed it simply disappears into the middle distance, Starship Enterprise style, with almost as little fuss given its self-shifting eight-speed automated gearbox and totally tractive all-wheel drive system.

And while performance is this car’s main aim (delete the ‘S’ in its name and you can get a V6 version for only $255,800) because it’s a hybrid there are environmental considerations as well.

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Plug it into the mains overnight to fully charge the 14kWh lithium ion battery and it will travel 50km on emissions-free electric power.

Eerily, in this mode it will still hit 100km/h in 6.1 seconds and do 140km/h. Those figures may not scare a Tesla S but then, you can’t easily refuel a Tesla S in Wycheproof or Cobar when the electrons run dry.

The somewhat dodgy official fuel consumption test for hybrids puts fuel consumption at 3.0 L/100km and emissions at 69 grams of C02 per 100km which sounds miraculous. Our somewhat non-definitive punt over 200-odd kilometres of Spanish roads at this car’s (see how I’m avoiding the full name?) international launch saw between 14 and 16L/100km on the trip computer average.

Not much of this is news given the existence of the mechanically identical five-door version but the Sport Turismo also offers what Porsche coyly refers to as “more versatility” through its wagon-style body.

Okay, this is no SUV in terms of carrying ability, and 20 litres is not much more luggage room than the liftback. But it also gets a three-seat rear bench for five-person capacity, with four seats as an option, and the back seat folds with a 40:20:40 split. Load the back to the roofline and it will hold 1295 litres or 50 more than the five-door.

Not only that, but the truncated rear-end, topped by its neat auto-extending wing seems to be a better executed design than the normal and never-ending Panamera sedan.

Although it carries a Porsche badge this is obviously not a sports car in the 911 mould and if you expect driving comfort, you’ll get it. With the drive selector in its softest setting the ride is pliant, the noise levels are low and at highway speeds – no matter which country you’re in – this is a silent, efficient and potent (if somewhat profligate) way to transport people stresslessly.

The marriage of the two motive forces has been well integrated and the switch from petrol to electric power is largely only discernable by noticing the rev counter drop to zero. Having said that, employ full throttle and the extra boost of flowing electrons from low revs is a force to be felt, and could come from no other source.

Dial up the ‘sport’ or ‘sport plus’ options on the steering wheel mounted dial and there is more emphasis on sending power to the wheels than back to the battery, the adaptive suspension firms up and other systems are attenuated for maximum attack.

This helps alleviate aspects of the Panamera hybrid’s considerable bulk, reining in the body movement through directional changes that otherwise provide a slight porpoising effect in fast corners. It might not be a nimble car given its size, but with so much grip on 21-inch tyres it is faster across country than most owners will ever need to travel.

For this sort of money you won’t see gaggles of Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid Sport Turismos clogging supermarket car parks but as a piece of engineering, design and sheer effrontery – together with some handy environmental credentials – it is certainly hard to ignore.